Copybot 2.0 … Myth, Rumour or Reality?
March 19, 2008 4:58 pm
Copybot 2.0, a myth?
Copybot 2.0 is what all designers fear: one click only, and the ‘thief’ has their content, ready to re-sell. It’s the worst case scenario they can think off. It’s a copybot that has no limits. Not even those imposed by the nature of Second Life.
It’s the fact that ‘copybots’ can’t be avoided without giving up freedom. And that some kind of theft will always be there, how many freedom we sacrifice:
Chris on a Town Hall talk with Philip, 2006 (comment 110):
The current gen CopyBot works by pretending to be a client and listening to what the server sends it. The server sends it prims and textures so it can display them for a user. Instead, it creates and uploads identical prims and textures of its own. As far as the server is concerned it is a builder who just built something.
Assume LL goes full scale lock down. They tell LSL to get stuffed, forget about open source, change the protocol, and encrypt the data path via SSL or something like it. This prevents copybot from connecting and makes reverse engineering difficult as you can’t just listen to the data on the wire.
Okay, so now you have copybot 2.0. It reads the prim / texture data directly out of SecondLife.exe’s memory (remember, it’s YOUR computer).
LL responds by randomizing the locations of stored data.
Copybot 3.0 sits between the program and the graphics card and listens to what the card is being told to draw. From that it tries to extrapolate the prims (although this is harder) but still gets the textures. It can’t connect to SL directly so it posts the data to a web page and a companion script in-game uses RPC or http to get the data and build accordingly.
Copybot 2.0, a rumour?
Rumours all over the gird that Copybot 2.0 has been released. People enabled ‘no-build’ to stop them (not that that works, a CopyBot just needs to sit around) and I have received numerous IM’s saying that ‘it’ is there. Only nobody could say more than ‘I heard Copybot 2.0 is out’. Until…
Copybot 2.0, a reality?
Until I talked to someone I do trust on this. No sources here either, though. But I got:
- A ‘functionality’ list for Copybot 2.0. And yeah, it is what all designers fear.
- The news +-20 avatars were already banned for use of Copybot 2.0 by Linden and their inventories and L$ balances were confiscated.
I trust the guy. I really do. Yet I can’t be 100% sure. But if this is true, I’m anxious to hear Linden Lab on this. And some people who have more rumours maybe? Two uncertainties added together don’t make one certainty for sure, but it might take some of my doubts away.
18 Responses to “Copybot 2.0 … Myth, Rumour or Reality?”
Copybot 2 is nothing more than a gui for libsecondlife’s TestClient, except with the “export” command properly filled out and enabled.
Yes, it can export textures.
Yes, it can export prims.
No, it cannot export prim contents a regular user cannot “see” (IE, -mod).
No, nothing in-world can “stop” it. Not no-script areas, not no-build areas.
In short, it is a client that instead of displaying the prims visually, it saves whatever data it can see to a file.
Dont see it as some legendary evil 1337 h4×0r tool.
See it as a tool. One which you (Yes you!) can use too.
As of today, it’s the only way to take your content (That you have copyright or other license to) with you to other Grids in the future.
Soraya, thanks for taking the time to respond. Yes, I know it’s just another agent, and that for instance if you have a ‘packaged’ goods (inside a box) there’s no way to get to them. Yes, I know nothing in-world can stop it. (See ‘Myth’, which is actually all to true.) Didn’t I just say that in the above post?
I know it (and it relatives) are the only way we can get stuff out. Yet that does not mean I must celebrate every use of it. ;) (I think it’s right to take a copy for own use, wrong to sell it. Shortly summarized my opinion. ;))
Yet if LL did take action on certain users of it, I’m curious to find out. You can’t blame me for that can you.
(And Me! Yes me! does not like to be treated as a total idiot.)
Funny, when I suggested doing just that, I was flamed. Glad to see people are waking up to the concept.
Question though, if *you* created the content, why can’t you simply use your source files in the other grids as opposed to taking texture content out of second life, premolested by their compression algorithms? Prims I can understand, but textures you’ve created, you can download through the standard viewer.
The only action LL could take to stop this, I’m not going to suggest, because every time I do, I get a million reasons why it’s ’socially wrong.’
Copybot is not the only way to steal textures however, something as simple as glintercept can get them as well, with alpha embedded, sculpt maps included.
I get a million reasons why it’s ’socially wrong.’ Cut off typing hands? :d
Hmm, I guess we’re protected, the teen grid is locked down on new registrations, and, us teens (except Katharine Berry of course, you rock! :-D) aren’t that smart (yet) to code the missing parts and compile the program… :-S
However, like Soraya Elcar said, CopyBot already existed. Linden made the cake, libsecondlife made the syrup and cream on top, and thieves simply put the cake in the oven. Oh, and later sold them to the local bakery. (AKA placed it in their shop / website)
NOTE: I don’t blame libsecondlife for making their interface, it’s a great advancement, that brought AjaxLife to life, SLeek, and more software. CopyBot was destined to happen.
This is an interesting development (if verified), but one that I’m not surprised about. I was one of the coding assistants for libsl when CB-1 hit and there was some private discussion at the time regarding past and possible future ways it could mutate. [NOTE: I no longer participate due to a revised ethics contract at my RL workplace.]
Past? - glintercept was used long before libsl even existed, and can be used anywhere; Nothing new here really. The Future pretty much is summarized by the original discussion with Philip above.
There’s going to be people who want to take the easy way out, even though (paradoxically) it may have been easier to learn the tools and create a similar item yourself - and in the process out-sell who you may have imitated with a far superior product.
You’d have to lock down everything to the OS level to prevent this (require Vista + enable its DRM?), or take the stance of a company like Blizzard and put in mini-spyware that shuts down the client if the normal ‘chain-of-command’ between the client and hardware is not in place. Both of these methods of course are not possible with an open source client available, and would be a very difficult challenge with an open source server (either LL’s or an outside avenue like OpenSim).
However, to the average person - someone who’s just in SL to socialize and otherwise have a good time - any variant of the CopyBot should be of no concern.
–TSK
@Vint:
Sorry if I sounded like I thought you were dumb or something, I’ve been a bit disillusioned by people who have no inclination to actually learn about this thing they’re terrified of and wanted to put it in concrete terms. All they see is some techno-sorcery and witchcraft! *torches and pitchforks!*
And I would also like to hear of the users who were banned for use of it and what exactly they did to deserve it, and if they were long-time citizens or just random griefer alts. (It’d be nice to make sure that they werent banning people who were using CopyBot legitimately as well…)
@Kailie:
Ideally one would use the highest-quality material available, so exporting textures with copybot isnt technically necessary, but it adds to the convenience, especially since it saves them named according to uuid. (But it certainly helps when you’ve lost the original!)
There is a ton of info flying around now as “rumors” about CopyBot, and where its coming from, so I am here to clear it up.
READ BELOW FOR THE *REAL FULL* STORY!
CopyBot 2.0 is here. CopyBot never left us, it simply went into hiding. CopyBot is nothing more than the export and import commands of TestClient, written by Eddy Stryker. As of today there are multiple CopyBot applications floating around the web, some free, others not. One of which is SLBot, on SLX. All this is was a copy of TestClient, with an interface wrapped around it. SLBot required registration as part of the purchase, because those idiots think selling free and open source software is fun. So then the Patriotic Nigras took a copy of SLBot, and decompiled it. They then released it on their blog as an executable, and the source over SVN. So yeah, CopyBot is alive and kicking, and this time he has a pretty interface.
Whether or not CopyBot is of any real importance is up to the individual, but at least now you know the facts.
/me flips the bird to those idiots who think selling free software is a good idea!
Every knife can be used either to cut the bread and slice the butter, or to stab in the back on a dark street…
@ Dalien… so does that mean we should ban forks, cars, tools, jet airliners, computers? Because all of these can be used inappropriately by malevolent individuals/groups.
My main concern is the dependence on LL asset servers. LL encourages this virtual economy and a consumer-based one at that. So people actually sink in some real dollars to “buy” things. Once people do that, they will try to protect their investments, whether they be island sims, mainland parcels, dresses, suits, etc. etc. I assume LL keeps records of who bought what parcel/sim/estate as it must to charge the all-important tier. But it cares nothing for people’s inventories. I think that to resell other’s works for one’s own profit is completely wrong. But to back up your assets to a safer or redundant system is just a legitimate and prudent thing to do.
@Ambigious: I think Dalien would be the last one for the banning argument.
And Ambigious, as long as you back up your own assets I have no problem with it either. As long as you don’t resell multiple copies of those that were not created by you.
But the whole problem here is, that there seems to be no way to prevent people from stealing without loosing the freedom we have now. Maybe the right way to deal with this, is to stop trying to prevent them, but find a good and efficient way to punish them if they do? (And the current procedures in place are neither good or efficient.)
Ambiguous,
What I wanted to say - any tool has two sides - and looking at only one side is wrong - whichever side that be. There are a lot of folks who look at it from either “it’s only for backups” or “it’s only for piracy” point of view.
There’s no illegal *technology* - there its illegal *use* - and the latter should be subject of noise, not the former.
As for the dependance on the asset servers - it’s not unique to the LL grid. AFAIK there’s no distributed technology at the moment - simply because boxing the users into the walled garden is a more fruity business for now.
I suspect if someone takes the copies off their own assets for backup purposes - they will be only right to do it. Indeed, IANAL, and the laws are strange these days - so maybe that’s not legal after all :)
/d
I have copybot and I use it every day, I can clone avatar, dumputoutfits textures to hard disk in 10 sec from any avatar, I can copy everything that is rezzed, I can copy particle sysytem effects, it remake the scripts, It’s awesome I t has ton of functions, you can’t imagine, it can log 20 bots at time, itr can speak, im , tp, fly, follow and get orders by im form an avatar master but prob is today started working dam!
Umm, Quantum, you can get BANNED from Second Life and PROSECUTED in a REAL LIFE COURT for that. Linden know you’re using one by the way, as CopyBot asks the server for specific info in a specific order several times. :-P (E.g.: the normal SL viewer asks for environment info on a random order. Prim 2953, prim 6853, prim 3954, etc. Copybot asks for prims on a fixed order. Prim 2953, prim 2954, prim 2955, etc.) In addition, if Vint will hand over your IP, i’ll try to get you banned from all SL blogs in the SL Bloggers group, and have you banned from Second Life Wikia as well. Now, get lost you pathetic criminal. >:-(
P.S.: If this is a joke I think now’s the time to say “Gotcha!” and run off. >.>
(Other readers, note I wasn’t “too harsh” on him. He LITERALLY steals the clothes off our backs and picks our pockets.)
Smiley, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he only does that to his own stuff everyday? It’s just an idiot that does not even dare to give out his full avie name. Ignore him! ;)
well you can try to get my IP banned, but I use a 7 miles super wirelss engine with packets injection and I crack others wireless connections, so you’ll probably get someone else banned lol, btw, all I do I doit for fun, I’m not that crazy to resell stuff
Come on, Smiley, just forget him, is just someone enough idiot that thinks is fun to steal instead of create.
Ok, i’ll let go. *Picks up phone* So, Raul, still got the number for that assassin?
Care to comment?